Flow vs. Spontaneity from Donna Trent

Mark Virkler's picture

In describing how we sense our hearts, I love the word "flow." God allowed me to see it in 1979, and it accurately describes what the Holy Spirit feels like within us as He moves. "Bubble up" is another neat descriptive expression which we get from the Hebrew word naba, which is translated as "prophecy." Another word I frequently use is "spontaneity." I talk of a spontaneous thought, rather than an analytical, connected thought.

However, as you will see from Donna Trent’s article below, our personal definitions and conceptions of words such as "spontaneous" can interfere with the revelation the Lord is giving us. In that case, we need to allow Him the opportunity to reframe the offending word so we see it from His perspective.


While beginning to believe and understand that the Holy Spirit living in me feels like a calm flowing river, I struggle with how God’s thoughts come to me in spontaneity. My definition of spontaneity caused a problem in my calm flowing river. I saw spontaneity as more than a hiccup in the flow. I saw it as a sudden impulse, an internal force popping up in the middle of flow, interrupting the peacefulness.

My friend, Janet, and I applaud ourselves at being able to get together spontaneously. For the most part, her call means “I’m available on short notice. Can you get yourself together and meet me?” That means I go into high gear…dress, makeup, and maybe travel 30 minutes. I run out of the house with makeup in hand to apply while stopped at traffic lights. Then I speed to get to the determined meeting place. I sink into the chair next to Janet and take the next ten minutes to calm my nerves. Aaah, our spontaneous reunion worked out today!

Spontaneous is often not peaceful for me. It is more like a brute interruption, more like a rupture. Like Mount St. Helens erupting. Like something out of a sci-fi movie that pops out of the earth with force and the character runs head-on into it. While flow is going smoothly and quietly, all of a sudden something that has dislodged from the river bed pops up like a balloon that was held under water, making a big loud splash demanding attention.

God showed me a different character of spontaneous which is more like His nature. Instead of an eruption, God’s spontaneous thought lighting in my mind is more like a leaf cascading down naturally and without effort lighting on the water surface. Or like a tiny dewdrop on the tip of a leaf being released by its natural impulse, without premeditation, and falling into the water below, barely making a sound. Or like a just-hatched bird ridding itself of the eggshell which freely agrees to go and gently plops as a little boat into the flow to enjoy the ride down the river.

It seems to me this word “spontaneous” can illicit different emotional responses. Isn’t it odd how my misperception of spontaneity as a “sudden impulse” triggered urgent hurried action? Isn’t it consoling and comforting that God gave me His view so that I can now see His spontaneous thoughts coming into my mind as very calming and uninvasive? To see it His way, I must pay attention by looking and listening, else I won’t see the leaf falling into the water.

Want to learn more about flow and how to connect with it?

Get the resources here: 4 Keys to Hearing God's Voice - Complete Discounted Package


 

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